View source for Muscadines

{{SPlantbox
|familia=Vitaceae
|genus=Vitis
|species=rotundifolia
|common_name=Muscadines
|habit=vine-climber
|Min ht box=60
|Min ht metric=ft
|Max ht box=100
|Max ht metric=ft
|lifespan=perennial
|exposure=sun
|water=moderate
|features=edible, fruit
|Min Temp Num=0
|Temp Metric=°F
|min_zone=5
|max_zone=9
|sunset_zones=7-9, 14, 18-21, 23, 26-33
|image=Vitis rotundifolia.jpg
|image_width=180
|image_caption=Muscadine
}}
{{Inc|
Vitis rotundifolia, Michx. (V. muscadina, V. angulata, V. verrucosa, V. peltata, Muscadinia rotundifolia, Small). Muscadine. Southern Fox Grape. Bullace, Bullit, or Bull Grape. Fig. 1708, Vol. III. Vine with hard warty wood, running even 60-100 ft. over bushes and trees, in the shade often sending down dichotomous aerial roots: lvs. rather small to medium (2-6 in. long), dense in texture and glabrous both sides (sometimes pubescent along the veins beneath), cordate-ovate and not lobed, mostly with a prominent and sometimes an acuminate point (but somewhat contracted above the termination of the 2 main side veins), the under surface finely reticulated between the veins, the teeth and the apex angular, coarse and acute, the basal sinus shallow, broad and edentate; petiole slender and (like the young growth) fine-scurfy, about the length of the lf .-blade: tendrils (or fl.-clusters) discontinuous, every third node being bare: fr.-bearing clusters smaller than the sterile ones, and ripening from 3-20 grapes in a nearly globular bunch: berries falling from the clusters when ripe, spherical or nearly so and large (1/2 – 1 in. diam.), with very thick and tough skin and a tough musky flesh, dull purple in color without bloom (in the Scuppernong variety silvery amber-green), ripe in summer and early autumn; seeds 1/4 – 3/8 in. long, shaped something like a coffee berry. River banks, swamps, and rich woodlands and thickets, S. Del. to N. Fla. and west to Mo., Kans., Texas, and Mex.
}}

'''Muscadines''' (''Vitis rotundifolia'') are a [[Vitis|grapevine]] species native to the present-day southeastern [[United States]] that has been extensively cultivated since the [[16th Century]]. Its recognized range in the United States extends from New York south to Florida, and west to Missouri, Kansas, Arkansas, Oklahoma and Texas. They are well adapted to their native warm and humid climate; they need fewer [[chilling requirement|chilling hour]]s than better known varieties and they thrive on summer heat.

The muscadine berries range from bronze to dark purple to black in color when ripe. They have skin sufficiently tough that eating the raw fruit often involves biting a small hole in the skin to suck out the pulp inside. Muscadines are not only eaten fresh, but also are used in making [[wine]], juice, and jelly.

Common Names: Muscadine, Bullace, Scuppernong, Southern Fox Grape. 

Growth Habits: Muscadines are vigorous, deciduous vines growing 60-100 ft. in the wild. Botanically, they differ in significant ways from other grapes and are placed in a separate sub-genus, Muscadinia. In contrast to most other grapes, muscadines have a tight, non-shedding bark, warty shoots and unbranched tendrils.

Foliage: The slightly lobed, 2-1/2 to 5 inch leaves are rounded to broadly ovate with coarsely serrate edges and an acuminate point. Dark green above and green tinged yellow beneath, the leaves are glossy on both sides, becoming firm and subglabrous at maturity.

Flowers: Muscadines are dioecious, with male and female flowers on different plants. The small, greenish flowers are borne in short, dense panicles. It appears that both wind and insects play a role in the pollination of the female flowers. Breeding and selection have produced self-fertile varieties with near-perfect flowers, which also serve as a pollen sources for the female plants. For best results a perfect-flowered vine should be within 25 ft. of female vines, or every third vine when planted in a mixed single row. Muscadines do not readily hybridize with other grape species.

Fruit: The fruit is borne in small, loose clusters of 3-40 grapes, quite unlike the large, tight bunches characteristic of European and American grapes. The round, 1 to 1-1/2 inch fruits have a thick, tough skin and contain up to 5 hard, oblong seeds. In color the fruits range from greenish bronze through bronze, pinkish red, purple and almost black. Sugar content varies from about 16% to 25% for the sweetest cultivars. The wild fruits and some older cultivars have a musky quality similar to American grapes, although not as pronounced. Modern cultivars have a unique fruity flavor with very little muskiness. The flavor and appearance of the dark colored muscadine fruits are remarkably similar to the jaboticaba.